You can find the first episode of Five Rings To Rule Them All, featuring Olympian and author Adam Rippon, on the Apple Podcasts page, Spotify, Spreaker, Castbox and Player FM.

The Olympics have been a part of my life since I can remember. The 1984 Summer Summer Games in Los Angeles were my introduction to the grandeur and splendor of the world’s greatest sporting event, with Americans like Carl Lewis and Greg Louganis stealing the headlines. Four years later, with the emergence of the flashy Florence Griffith-Joyner, I was hooked.

Fast-forward a few years, and Outsports has seen incredible interest in the Olympics from our mostly LGBTQ readers since our very early years. Whether it’s the Summer or Winter Games, when the Olympics roll around the gays love their swimming, track & field, fencing and gymnastics.

So when it came time to create a podcast for the new Outsports podcast platform, I knew just where to go.

My new podcast, Five Rings To Rule Them All, will be all things Olympics and LGBTQ. I’ll interview out Olympians, athletes looking to qualify for their first Olympics, and other people in and around the world’s greatest sporting event.

Each conversation will be unique. Nikki Hiltz will share her thoughts of being in a relationship with another elite athlete. Swimmer Amini Fonua will talk about representing a nation that still criminalizes homosexuality.

For the first episode I talked with figure skater and author Adam Rippon, whose new book, Beautiful on the Outside, gives readers a glimpse into his very personal life.

With over 100 out LGBTQ Olympians expected in Tokyo next summer, and so many who’ve come before, we’ll have a lot of people to talk to.

All the while the conversations will keep the Olympic spirit — focusing on inclusion and excellence — at the fore.

The name, Five Rings To Rule Them All, obviously (for Tolkien fans) comes from The Lord Of The Rings. That’s why I always end my interviews with an homage to the incredible books and movies from LOTR that inspired the name.

I hope you enjoy my conversations with these incredible LGBTQ people in and around the Olympics. Their stories are all inspiring.

You can find all of the Outsports podcasts here, as well as on the Apple Podcasts page, Spotify, Spreaker, Castbox and Player FM.

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